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Monday, July 15, 2013

NOTC Spillway Classic Trail Run: The 2013 Recap

I have officially made my second, and last visit to the Bonnet Carré Spillway for the 2013 running season. This past Sunday's Spillway Classic Trail Run presented by the New Orleans Track Club was a much more pleasant, albeit muddier experience than my previous excursion during the Armadillo Trail Run in June.
Both races start and end in the same place, at the Spillway boat launch just off Airline Highway in Norco, LA. The destination just outside of Greater New Orleans is close enough that it can be reached within 20 minutes, but far enough that you feel like you've left civilization. There's the ever present possibility for the sound of banjos to come from the trees. Its the perfect setting for a trail run, which is why I keep going back every chance I get.

The New Orleans Track Club (NOTC) has put on the annual Spillway Classic Trail Run continuously over multiple decades, and its steeped in history. There are participants that have been to more occurrences of the event than they can remember, and they still arrive every year dressed in costume ready to carry on the tradition. This year's race brought nearly 800 participants to the starting line, with numerous more spectating on the sidelines and cheering on the finishers. No one stood out more than the man pictured here, though. I need details on his annual watermelon sacrifice and all that it entails.

The race started on time at 8am with the sun already beating down on the open field where anxious runners had lined up. After a rousing rendition of the national anthem, the gun fired, sending participants up the side of the levee to the precipice where a gravel road led them even further in to the spillway. This gravel road is followed for roughly a mile and a half. At this midway point, there is a water station roadside followed by a sharp left turn back down the levee in to "the gauntlet."

As explained on the NOTC website, "The 3 mile course is rated on a 0 to 10 scale. A 0 rating indicates a dry course with no hazards; a 10 rating indicates a course with a lot of standing water, mud, a slippery surface, and hazards." This year's course garnered a 7 rating, which I consider slightly conservative. After entering the wooded area of the spillway, runners encounter pits filled with knee high water and muck. This is where many a runner falls to their muddy demise, intentionally or not. Its also where runners lose loosely tied shoes, which this year I did. Fortunately, it slipped off my foot just as quickly as I retrieved it, slipped it back on and trudged forward. The return trip back to the finish line is a hard-packed mud trail through trees and weeds. Runners file single file on the course to complete their 3 miles. Unlike previous trail runs in the Spillway, the course is straighter and more direct. There's less weaving around sharp turns, which makes for an easier time on ankles and knees. At the end of the trail is one final mud pit for the adventurous runner to get extra muddy for their finish line photo and an attempt at a win in the muddiest runner contest.

The past couple installments of the race have seen amped up excitement and participation. Locals are realizing what a gem this race is, and the NOTC has stepped up with better execution elements and a finishers medal that's so heavy it could be used as a weapon. The finish line party features plenty of Blue Runner red beans, watermelon, beer, and more. My excitement peaked when I saw a snowball machine at the post-race festival ... with self served grape syrup.

This year there was a post race party at the Spillway Bar, less than 100 yards from the race site. The NOTC Facebook page has video, and you have to see it to believe it. My running partner and I opted out of the party, and returned to the suburbs to find the nearest drive through Starbucks. Next year, I think we may have to stick around.

Thanks Karen! I have no idea what the story is on the guy with the tutu. I didn't see him running, but I've been told that he comes to the race every year and does a watermelon sacrifice. He didn't introduce himself as Gallagher, so I need to find out more details.

It was lost, and then it was found! The course was plenty muddy, just not terribly difficult. It was very manageable. I wouldn't be surprised if there was assistance of a man-made kind that added some liquid hydration to the course to make it just a bit more fun. Purely speculation, though.